Converted from catcher to pitcher in the minor leagues, Percival rode an overpowering fastball and max-effort mentality to the majors where he apprenticed under Lee Smith before taking over as closer in 1996.

Percival had the first of eight 30-save seasons for the Angels that season. He was named to four All-Star teams and still holds the Angels' franchise records for saves (316), games (579) and fewest hits per nine innings (6.03).

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Percival will always be remembered by Angels fans most for being the man on the mound for the final clinching out each step of the way during their 2002 championship run (above).

''Percy was very talented with not only great velocity (on his fastball) but the ability to put the fastball where he wanted,'' Angels manager Mike Scioscia said of his first closer. ''He learned as a young player from Lee Smith, from watching him close, about how to use strategy with his pitching. He was able to slow the game down on the mound and make pitches in situations that were always going to be high pressure.''

Angels owner Gene Autry opened his checkbook to bring a number of established stars West during the late '70s and into the '80s. In Carew (actually obtained in a trade with the Twins then signed), he got a future Hall of Famer.

Carew's credentials were already established before he joined the Angels in 1979. He won his seven batting titles (1969, 1972-75, 1977-78) and the A.L. MVP award (1977) as a Twin. With the Angels, though, he batted .314 (second on the franchise's all-time list), started five All-Star games (a franchise record) and was a member of the Angels' first two division championship teams (1979 and 1982).

Carew returned as hitting coach in the '90s, tutoring a generation of Angels hitters that included Garret Anderson, Tim Salmon, Darin Erstad and Jim Edmonds.

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''Having played with the Angels was a great experience and truly was because of Mr. Autry signing me,'' Carew said. ''I had heard so many wonderful things about him from Lyman Bostock and Dan Ford (Twins' teammates of Carew who moved on to the Angels). That's the reason I came here rather than New York or San Francisco. The longer I was here, the fans really accepted me and I thoroughly enjoyed the relationship we forged and my time playing in front of them. To this day – living here and being retired – it means a great deal to remain part of the organization and the community.

''I am thankful for the honor of being listed with this group of distinguished Angels. So many individuals have played an important role in the history of the organization. To be included among them means a great deal.''

Hard work and hustle made Downing an Angels fan favorite during his 13 seasons with the team.

An Anaheim native who was cut from his Magnolia High School baseball team and stuck as a bullpen catcher for Cypress College, Downing signed as an amateur free agent with the White Sox after attending an open tryout and worked his way to the majors -- only to severely injure his knee on the first play of his big-league career (a diving catch of a pop up as he slid down the dugout steps).

His career didn't blossom until a trade to the Angels in 1977, a commitment to weight training and a radical change in his batting stance. During his 13 seasons as an Angel, Downing would also overcome a broken ankle and shoulder woes to become the franchise leader (at the time) in games, at-bats, runs scored, hits, home runs, RBI and walks. He and Bobby Grich were the only Angels to be part of the team's first three playoff teams (1979, 1982 and 1986).

One of Gene Autry's better purchases, Grich was signed as a free agent and helped the Angels become winners for the first time in franchise history. He and Brian Downing were the only players to play on each of the Angels' first three division championship teams (1979, 1982 and 1986). Grich was also only the second player in franchise history to play 1,000 games or more at one position for the Angels (Jim Fregosi was the first at shortstop).

A six-time All-Star (three times as an Angel) and four-time Gold Glove winner, Grich's best season as an Angel was labor-scarred 1981 when he became the first second baseman to lead the American League in slugging percentage (.543) since 1945 and finished in a four-way tie with Eddie Murray, Dwight Evans and Tony Armas for the A.L. home run lead (22). He was the first A.L. second baseman to claim a share of the home run title since Nap Lajoie in 1901.

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''It's a huge honor to be considered among the Top 50 players all-time in the Angels' organization,'' Grich said. ''Growing up as a kid in Long Beach, the Angels have always been my favorite team and it's been a privilege and an honor to continue to be a part of the organization going on my 24th year now. To be remembered as one of their top players is indeed icing on the cake.'' TEXT BY BILL PLUNKETT, PHOTO BY KEVIN SULLIVAN

If Nolan Ryan was the best pitcher ever to wear an Angels uniform, Finley stands as the best homegrown pitcher the Angels have ever developed -- and they didn't spend much time doing it.

The tall Louisiana left-hander was promoted from Class-A to the major leagues just a year after he was drafted by the Angels and jumped into the middle of the 1986 pennant chase. He stuck around for the next 17 seasons, 14 with the Angels.

During his time as an Angel, Finley won 15 games or more six times including a three-year run (1989-91) as good as any Angels pitcher has ever had -- a 52-27 record with a 2.93 ERA and 504 strikeouts.

''I thought being inducted into the Angels' Hall of Fame (above) was the pinnacle of my baseball career but really, to get an honor like this -- to be in the Top 50? That's pretty special and unique,'' Finley said. ''When I left school, I was just trying to make it in baseball and then just hold on once I made it. To have spent the time I did with the Angels and everything that happened was very special. That's why I stay in the area -- because I love it here and this organization has always been No. 1 in my heart. Always. My most important, memorable friendships were created during my time with the Angels.

''How do you describe the time of your life to somebody? I could sit here and talk to you a month about people, places, events with the organization and people would shake their heads and say, 'Really? That's what happened?' People don't realize what an honor it is to play for this organization. The fans, the Hall of Fame, this recognition -- the dream continues.''

One of the most quietly productive players in franchise history, Anderson was never embraced by fans as thoroughly as some other players. But when he left after the 2008 season, he had stamped his name all over the franchise record book.

''He's been a rock. I've always said he's the rock in that lineup,'' teammate Darin Erstad said of the 11 seasons he spent playing with Anderson.

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''I think the perception of Garret within the media and with fans is totally different than what Garret was really about,'' Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. ''Garret was one of the most focused and had one of the greatest wills to achieve. It didn't manifest itself outwardly in the same way it did with David Eckstein or in Darin Erstad or an Adam Kennedy. But make no mistake about it, his focus and his passion for the game and how hard he worked every day was second to none.''

A three-time All-Star (2002, 2003, 2005) and two-time Silver Slugger Award winner (2002, 2003), Anderson never hit below .280 in any season with the Angels and is one of only two players in franchise history (Vladimir Guerrero is the other) with four seasons of 100 RBI or more. He had a 10-RBI game in 2007 (the franchise record) and a 12-game streak with at least one RBI (also a club record). His 28-game hitting streak in 1998 is still the club record as well and his six-hit game (Sept. 27, 1996) is tied for the club record.

''I am truly humbled and honored to be voted in the top 50 Angels of all time,'' Anderson said. ''I thank all who were involved in the voting process.''

Already one of the best players in the game when he arrived as a free agent in 2004, Guerrero's time in Anaheim validated him as a future Hall of Famer -- and Arte Moreno as an owner willing to spend money to put talent in an Angels uniform.

The Angels made the playoffs in five of the six seasons Guerrero spent anchoring the middle of their lineup. With a smile every bit as big as his strike zone (which, Angels broadcaster Rex Hudler loved to point out, extended from Vlad's nose to his toes), Guerrero was a fan favorite and stands as the best hitter of the Angels' first 50 seasons.

He won the AL MVP in 2004 with a torrid finish that helped the Angels win their first division title since 1986 -- a .371 average, 10 home runs, 23 RBI and 24 runs scored in September included a 15-for-28, six-HR, 11-RBI line in the final seven games of the season. Guerrero put up a .300 average and 25 or more home runs in five of his six seasons with the Angels, part of an 11-year run with the .300-25 double that is matched in baseball history only by Lou Gehrig.

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''I think, in the batter's box, Vlad is going to be one of the best hitters not only in an Angels uniform but in baseball history,'' Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. ''When you're doing things (like the .300-25 streak) that put your name in company with baseball greats like Lou Gehrig, that's something special.

''His ability to swing so hard at a pitch and still be able to square it up was incredible.''

No one was more enmeshed in the first two decades of the Angels' history than Fregosi.

Plucked from the Boston Red Sox in the franchise's original expansion draft as an 18-year-old prospect, Fregosi became the best player of the Angels' first decade, winning a Gold Glove, hitting for the cycle twice (the first Angel to hit for the cycle) and representing the team six times in the All-Star Game before he was traded to the Mets in Dec. 1971. That trade brought four players to the Angels including the most exciting player of their second decade -- Nolan Ryan.

Fregosi returned to the Angels in 1978 as manager and led the franchise to its first AL West title and playoff appearance in 1979.

The first of the four ''Angels in the Outfield'' that anchored the team in the '90s (Salmon, Anderson, Erstad and Edmonds), Salmon won the franchise's first (and still only) Rookie of the Year award in 1993 when he hit .283 with 31 home runs and 95 RBI.

Though he never made an All-Star team, Salmon went on to have four more seasons with 30 or more home runs and 95 or more RBI and finished his career as the Angels' all-time leader in several offensive categories (though he was later surpassed by Garret Anderson). He still holds the franchise record in home runs (299) and walks (970).

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The only player in this Top 10 who spent his entire career with the team, Salmon came to be known as 'Mr. Angel' for his wholesome identification with the team. The scene of Salmon parading around the field with a cowboy hat that formerly belonged to original Angels owner Gene Autry (above) is one of the indelible images of the 2002 championship celebration.

''Tim was very, very talented and played with a tremendous amount of focus,'' Angels manager Mike Scioscia said. ''I never saw him give an at-bat away, give a play away. His ability to focus on what he needed to do to compete was a major factor in him being one of the best players in Angels history.''

When the Angels acquired Ryan from the Mets in Dec. 1971, he was a 24-year-old right-hander with a losing record (29-38) and an explosive fastball he had yet to harness. He found both his control and his legend in his eight seasons with the Angels.

Ryan played for four teams during his 27-year Hall of Fame career but he won more games (138), struck out more batters (2,416), started more games (288), pitched more innings (2,181 1/3) and threw more no-hitters (four) as an Angel than he did with the Rangers, Astros or Mets.

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A five-time All-Star as an Angel, Ryan set the major-league strikeout record with 383 in his second season with the team. That was one of four 300-strikeout seasons and one of seven times he led the league in strikeouts as an Angel.

He threw the first of his record seven no-hitters on May 15, 1973 against the Royals then did it two months later against the Tigers. In addition to his four no-hitters as an Angel, he had six one-hitters, giving fans reason to think they might see something special each time he took the mound.

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Tim Salmon got more first-place votes than Nolan Ryan, but Mark Whicker's 12th place vote for same swung the race for the top spot. Jim Fregosi had as many first place votes as Ryan. Brian Downing may have been a top five finisher, but Whicker did not give him any love. Very interesting voting near the top. GRAPHIC BY CINDY O'DELL, TEXT BY KEITH SHARON

The 2002 championship team (above) is well represented on our list of the 50 Greatest Angels.

Click on the photos for a countdown of the Top 10 selected by our panel.TEXT BY BILL PLUNKETT, AP PHOTO

It was a watershed moment decades in the making.

As the Angels celebrate their 50th anniversary this season, one season stands out above the rest.

"What 2002 did for this organization was -- it took away the shackles of the past," said Angels vice-president of communications Tim Mead, an Angels employee for over 30 years.

"We shed that skin."

That 2002 team gave the Angels "an identity, acceptance, the continuity" the franchise had spent 40 years chasing, Mead said. Not surprisingly, three players from the franchise's first (and still only) World Series team landed in the top 10 of the 50 Greatest Angels selected by a panel assembled by the Orange County Register (Tim Salmon, Garret Anderson and Troy Percival).

That team changed everything for the franchise, agreed Hall of Fame baseball writer Ross Newhan who covered the team as a beat writer from its first season and later wrote the definitive history of the Angels in book form.

"I really think so," Newhan said. "Even more so than the '82 or '86 or '79 teams (division champions) – they were finally a World Series winner.

"It was the first time you could say the Angels had their act together."

Until then, the franchise had essentially spent its life as an understudy – in the shadows, first, of the more established (more successful) Dodgers and more benevolently of its own owner, the revered 'Cowboy' Gene Autry.

"I think they were, in some ways, in the Dodgers' shadow from the start," Newhan said, recalling the days when the Angels shared Dodger Stadium – and were billed for the privilege in every way their landlords could invent.

"They moved to Anaheim (in 1966) and for awhile it was good – a home of their own – but in the operation of the club and in publicity and attendance and in media coverage, it really didn't change. In the back of their minds – really, in the front of their minds – the Angels always had the Dodgers in their thoughts."

Chasing the Dodgers led to philosophical problems – the Angels never seemed to have one. For decades, they couldn't find the World Series with a road map – because a road map requires you to pick a route and stick with it.

"It affected the way they went about their business," Newhan said. "One year, it was 'We're going to grow from within.' The next year, they were going to sign free agents."

Autry's willingness to pay to bring stars to Orange County led to the additions of players like Rod Carew, Bobby Grich and Brian Downing – all of whom made our top 10 – and occasionally stole headlines from the Dodgers. It didn't lead to a World Series, though, and the annual drive to 'Win one for the Cowboy' worked against the Angels.

"It may not have been a conscious thing – but it was always a subconscious thing that they had to try to win one for the Cowboy," Newhan recalled.

Autry did not live to see his team in the World Series. Instead, it was two decisions made during Disney's brief reign as owners that led to the franchise's transformation – the decision to hire Bill Stoneman as GM in 1999 and Stoneman's choice of Mike Scioscia as manager.

"Bill was such a low-key man but he was so methodical, so on top of things and so in tune with Mike and what Mike's vision was," Mead said. "And Mike was in tune with Bill and what his philosophy and approach was."

The hiring of Scioscia ushered in the most successful era in franchise history – and ended the Angels' stepbrother status in regards to the Dodgers.

"Scioscia was a great difference-maker for the Angels," Newhan said. "They had taken away the guy -- a lifelong Dodger – who was the heir apparent (to Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda). ... It was probably the first time you could say what a mistake the Dodgers had made."

To the idea that he had helped the Angels grow out of their second-class baseball status, Scioscia says "I don't know about that."

"I do know when you win a World Series championship and move forward and achieve, the perception changes and hopefully we're on our way," Scioscia said. "I don't know how we (the Angels) were perceived before we got here. But I do know ... it's a long journey to build a franchise, to build that tradition. Those players (on the 2002 team) put this franchise on that road. But we've just started."

Click on the photos to count down the Top 10 on our 50 Greatest Angels list.

NOTE: The greatest Angels could be players, coaches, front office personnel or announcers who spent at least three seasons with the team.

The panel of voters was eclectic. Members of the Register's baseball staff and columnists were joined by prominent Angels' website administrators, a member of the Angels front office, a radio personality and a few Angels' bloggers.

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